Hangman
by diedlaughing.bfd
Summary: Bella is stuck studying for SATs and Edward is trying to be helpful.


Ugh. I hate studying. Not only studying, but studying for pointless things, like SATs. Honestly, when is it going to matter when I'm a vampire? Frowning, I concentrated on the problem that was in front of me.

_With the 1969 film __The Learning Tree__, Gordon Parks proved what a truly -- artist he was: he not only directed the film and composed its musical score, but also adapted its screenplay from his own novel._

_A. Complacent_

_B. Protean_

_C. Lauded_

_D. Clairvoyant_

_E. Harried_

What's the point of these problems anyway? It's a fact that they never use the same word twice. You could memorize every single word that has ever been used on the SAT test, and it would never do you any good. At that particular moment, Edward climbed through my window and plopped down on my bed.

"Hi." I said automatically, glad of the distraction. I turned around to face him from my desk. "What's up?"

"The ceiling."

"Really original. What are you doing here, don't _you_ have to study?"

He looked hurt. "You want me to go?"

"No!" Under no circumstances was I letting my perfect study distraction leaving. He raised his eyebrows, and I cleared my throat. "I just meant that don't you have to get ready for SAT's next weekend?"

He shrugged his shoulders idly. "I don't need to, I've already taken the SAT's. Repeatedly. I don't think studying is going to help me much anymore." He smiled his crooked smile. "You, on the other hand, seem to need as much help as you can get in the English department. I thought you had a bigger vocabulary, Bella."

I scowled. I do, but I've never even heard of most of these words before! Like, protean! What does that even mean?"

"Readily assuming different forms or characters; extremely variable."

I looked back at the question. "Sounds like the answer then." I marked it down quickly before turning back. "So if you have nothing to do on this fine day, then why are you here when you know I need to study for this, when you were the one who asked me to do this in the first place?"

"Alice saw you were having trouble with the vocab part." Figures.

"So you came here to distract me to make me feel better?"

"No, I thought of a solution, so you can study better." His face brightened, and I instantly felt a sense of foreboding. See? My vocabulary can be impressive when it wants to be.

"And what would that be?"

He swung his legs off the side of the bed and crossed over the room to my desk. Grabbing some paper and a pen, he quickly drew a series of dashes and a few more lines that seemed oddly familiar. I looked at him in disbelief.

"Hangman?"

"Why not? It helps with the spelling, and it's more interesting than answering questions. Unless you like that kind of studying."

I swiftly shook my head no, and looked back at the paper. Resigning myself to my fate, I started picking through letters.

"OK," he said. "I'll give you the definition, and then you can start picking letters."

"Just don't forget, the hangman has a head, then you add a body, then a leg, then the other leg, then the arm, then the other arm, then a foot, then the other foot, a hand, then the other, then an eye, then the other eye, a nose and a mouth, in that order."

He stared at me like I was a mad woman, which I possibly was. Several hours of studying for pointless tests does that to you. I just shrugged my shoulders.

An hour later we were still at it. The current word was a mystery to me.

enn

I was staring at the word blankly, most of my letters used up, with only one eye, the nose, and mouth left before I lost. Desperate, I guessed.

"Q!"

"…Q?" he asked, as he marked down another wrong letter. That left the nose and mouth.

"It's possible."

"No it's not!"

"I've never heard this word, it could be."

He stared at me in disbelief. "Ennqu?"

I felt my face burn. "U."

He filled in one of the last two blanks: ennu

"Well that was just ridiculously unhelpful. Are you sure you're not making this word up?"

"It means boring, or lacking interest or energy."

"Sort of like me right now." I growled.

He leaned down and gave me a quick kiss. "Come on, Bella, you can do this."

Stupid, cheating vampire. "Fine…i."

He grinned and filled in the last letter: ennui.

I looked at it blankly. "Ennui?"

"Yes, it's a good SAT word," he said defensively. I rolled my eyes. He glanced at the clock and sighed.

"I've got to go, Alice needs something back home. I'll be back later, alright?"

I nodded and he kissed me goodbye, then shot out the window. I on the other hand, went back to the questions. Until he came back, I was stuck. Stupid, cheating, walking-dictionary vampire.


End file.
